This invention relates to a leveling device which is particularly suitable for leveling and/or aligning electric components such as plug connector receiving receptacles, switches and combinations of such, arranged in an electrical outlet box.
Electric outlet boxes are commonly installed on vertical walls throughout modern buildings. Such outlets boxes are generally intended for mounting electric components such as plug connector receiving receptacles, switches and/or combinations thereof to provide necessary assemblies for the convenient access of the occupant. Typically such outlet boxes have standard sized threaded holes arranged in standard spaced alignment at opposite sides thereof for mounting one or more components, with plug receiving receptacles and/or switches having one or more oblong holes arranged at opposite ends thereof which generally correspond and mate with the threaded holes of the outlet box. The components are mounted to the outlet box through screws which are commonly inserted through the oblong holes of a component to the threaded holes of the box for securely mounting a component to the outlet box.
The outlet boxes are generally mounted into or flush with the surface of the wall such that they cannot be easily moved for re-alignment, and generally are initially aligned to a generally vertical alignment or xe2x80x9cvertical levelxe2x80x9d in relation to vertical lines of the building. Outlet boxes are visible, but necessary contrivances on the walls of the building and to make them less conspicuous are generally hidden by cover plates which have standard sized openings arranged to surround necessarily visible switch handles or plug receivers of the plug receiving receptacles. Such cover plates are generally sized to extend beyond the borders of the outlet box so as to cover the opening in the wall for access to the outlet box and provide a finished look to the assembly. The cover plates are generally screw mounted to the plug connector receiving receptacle and/or switch, which in turn is/are mounted to the outlet box.
Thus, the electrician who strives to assure that the assembly has a finished vertically level appearance, must first assure that the components are mounted to the outlet box in a vertically level arrangement by manipulation of mounting screws within the oblong holes of the components. When there is more than one receptacle, switch or combination of components, each must be properly spaced from the other to enable appropriate alignment and mating of the switch handles and or plugs with the corresponding holes in the cover plate.
In the past, the electrician has generally relied upon his/her visual acumen for appropriate mounting of the components and his/her ability to accurately visually predict a suitable vertical alignment and appropriate spacing among components. The problem with such is that all electricians are not equal in capability and since they must work close to the outlet assembly when doing the necessary manipulation and accurate viewing of vertical alignment is best done from a far perspective, alignment is a hit-or miss proposition. The result is that the electrician generally ends up availing the services of another to view the vertical alignment from a far perspective while he/she adjusts the components or viewing appearance and spaces the components through a trial and error process.
An object of the present invention is to provide an electricians leveling device which can be conveniently used to level standard components of a outlet box.
It is a further object of the invention to provide an electricians level which can be conveniently used to accurately space components in a multiple component outlet box.
It is another object of the invention to provide an electricians level which is convenient to use and has multiple utilities.
These and other objects of the invention will become apparent in the following recitation of the invention.
The method of the invention is to utilize a leveling means to ascertain the vertical and/or horizontal level of components of an outlet box, by using the female bar slots of a plug receiving receptacle component as a base level reference platform. Plug receiving receptacle components generally comprise two spaced apart plug receivers. Each of the plug receivers in turn generally comprise two, spaced apart, generally parallel female bar slots, arranged to accept corresponding flat bar prongs of a plug connector to complete a standard AC current circuit, and a rounded ground slot which is arranged offset from the parallel bar slots. The parallel female bar slots of both plug receivers in a receptacle component are arranged in generally parallel aligned symmetry with a central axis through the oblong mounting holes of the receptacle, and vertical or horizontal alignment of either of the parallel female bar slots of a plug receiving receptacle, automatically vertically or horizontally aligns the entire receptacle.
In the present invention, a device is provided comprising opposing, generally parallel, generally rectilinear male bar prongs which are arranged to insert into corresponding female bar slots of one of the plug receivers of a plug receiving receptacle. A spirit or other suitable level is provided which is arranged to designate a horizontal level when the parallel male bar prongs are disposed around a vertical axis.
Thus, in the method of the invention the user loosely mounts a plug receiving receptacle in an outlet box, plugs the device of the invention into one of the plug receivers of the receptacle, and by manipulating the device aligns the receptacle to a vertical position as indicated by a horizontal alignment designation of a spirit level bubble or electronic level indicator means. The mounting screws are then tightened to fix the receptacle to a desired aligned position. Since cover plates of outlet boxes are manufactured to standard openings in standard spaced positions, the standard plug receiving receptacle, fixed to the standard outlet box, serves as a base level reference platform from which all measurements and alignments of all other components can be derived.
Thus, in accord with the method of the invention a device having a housing which is shaped and formed to have reference means such as shoulders, edges and the like which are standard measured distances from the female bar slots of the first fixed base level reference, are representative of points of alignment for other components such as additional plug receiving receptacles, one or more switches and the like.
The device of the present invention comprises the combination of a leveling means, preferably spirit leveling means, and at least one plug connector having two, spaced apart, generally parallel, generally flat male bar prongs aligned to matingly insert into corresponding parallel female bar slots of a standard AC current plug receiving receptacle component. The level means of the device is arranged such that it provides a visual and/or audio indication of horizontal alignment when the parallel flat bar prongs are arranged along vertical axes.
The device of the invention generally comprises a housing, from which the generally parallel, flat bar prongs extend on one side, the housing being sized and shaped for convenient insertion of the flat bar prongs into one outlet of a plug connector receptacle. The leveling means is mounted to the housing, preferably built into the housing, on a side adjacent and/or opposite to the side comprising the flat bar prongs.
In a preferred embodiment of the assembly of the invention, the housing is generally rectilinear and formed from a molded plastic or the like. The bar prongs can be of any suitable electrically conductive and/or non-conductive material, but generally are of a conductive metal, being attached to the housing by molding the plastic housing around ends thereof, with opposite ends of the flat prongs extending from a side or end of the molded housing. When the bar prongs are of a conductive material, they are insulated separate from each other to prevent short circuiting of the plug receiver. A spirit or other suitable level is generally molded into the housing, at an opposite and/or adjacent side thereof, arranged to provide a ready view the level indicator such as a bubble, light, meter and the like when the prongs are inserted into a prong receiving receptacle.
One or more spirit or other levels can be comprised in a housing and generally it is convenient to have at least two levels arranged to indicate level perpendicular to each other. In such arrangement, a first level will indicate vertical alignment of the parallel bar prongs, e.g. the most popular vertical alignment of a receptacle plug; while a second level will indicate horizontal alignment of the parallel bar prongs, e.g. a less popular but still common horizontal alignment of a receptacle plug.
In an embodiment of the invention, the housing comprises internal wiring from the parallel bar prongs which are enabled to connect and/or comprise circuitry to a meter, light or the like for testing circuit continuity and the like. In a preferred embodiment a molded elastomeric housing comprises a visible light emitting source, which is activated through internal wiring upon insertion into the plug receiving receptacle and completion of a circuit among the parallel bar prongs. In a still further embodiment, an indicator, meter or the like is activated upon detection of a completed circuit.
In another embodiment of the invention, the housing comprises surfaces, edges, shoulders or the like which are dimensioned from the parallel bar prongs in standard reference distances to enable alignment of other components which may be arranged in the outlet box. For example, in one embodiment, the device housing is dimensioned to a width wherein upon insertion of the parallel bar prongs into a first plug receiving receptacle, a shoulder on a surface along the width of the housing, will abut the edge of a face of a second plug receiving receptacle at a standard prescribed distance corresponding to alignment with standard cover plate openings. Similarly, a shoulder and/or edge of the housing will be dimensioned to abut a handle or perimeter shoulder of a switch at a standard prescribed distance corresponding to alignment with standard combined switch and receptacle cover plates. In a preferred embodiment, the side of the device housing comprising the male bar prongs, comprises a raised curved shoulder spaced a standard distance from the male bar prongs which is arranged to generally engage a rounded edge of an adjacent receptacle receiver at a distance corresponding to the spaced openings of a multiple plug receptacle cover, while the side itself continues to extend to an edge corresponding to the spaced standard distance from the male bar prongs to the edge of a spaced opening of a switch handle of a combination receptacle and switch cover plate. Thus, the device enables ready reference location and level of a second, third, etc., receptacle(s) in a multiple receptacle outlet box and ready reference location and leveling of a switch in a combination receptacle/switch outlet.
In another embodiment, a molded housing comprises a deep slot sized for convenient insertion of a switch handle for quick determination of switch level in a non-receptacle containing outlet box. The slot can be of variable stepped widths, depths and/or lengths for various different switch handles, or there can be multiple slots of different dimensions and the like. In a preferred embodiment, the slot(s) is contained in a side of the device adjacent the male bar prongs and the side extends to an edge corresponding to the spaced standard distance between spaced opening of switch handles of a multiple switch cover plate.
In still further embodiments, the device of the invention comprises, a narrow slot or the like into which tabs of a switch or receptacle can be inserted to be bent for removal, or multiple other combination components useful to the electrician in performing jobs associated with the installation of components in an outlet box.